Month: November 2007

A 45-Year-Old Promise

Nola Ochs, a student at Fort Hays State University in Kansas, took a break from her studies recently to celebrate her 95th birthday. She began attending college at Fort Hays in 1930 but didn’t graduate. When she realized she was only a few credits away from earning her degree, she returned to the university in 2006. Nola is not going to let her age prevent her from honoring a commitment over 76 years ago to finish her education.

Shakespeare’s Translation?

Some have speculated that William Shakespeare helped translate the King James Bible. They say that he inserted a cryptogram (a message written in code) while he translated Psalm 46. In this psalm, the 46th word from the beginning is shake and the 46th word from the end is spear. Furthermore, in 1610, while the King James Bible was being translated, Shakespeare would have been 46 years old. Despite these coincidences, no serious evidence supports this theory.

An Old Man’s Prayer

Have you heard the story about the 85-year-old man who was arrested for praying?

Two Wayward Brothers

The story of the prodigal son is actually the story of two wayward brothers and their loving father. It’s a universal story that represents every member of the human race.

Hiding My Face

I’m a news junkie. I like knowing what’s going on in the world. But sometimes the atrocities of life make me feel as if I’m a kid watching a scary movie. I don’t want to see what happens. I want to turn away to avoid watching.

Too Old?

God has limitless ways of reaching people. So if you feel that you don’t have the ability to reach others for Christ, think about 76-year-old Ethel Hatfield. Desiring to serve her Lord, she asked her pastor if she could teach a Sunday school class. He informed her that he thought she was too old! She went home heavy-hearted and disappointed.

Anonymous Has Come

Years ago I received a cylinder in the mail that turned out to be an exquisite, custom-made Jim Schaaf bamboo fly rod and Bill Ballan classic reel—costly fishing gear that I could not have afforded. An enclosed handwritten note said simply, “I wanted to do something for you.” To this day I have no idea who sent it.

The Pretender

When a waitress in Ohio asked to see a customer’s driver’s license, she was shocked when she saw the photo on the ID. It was her own picture! The waitress had lost her driver’s license a month earlier, and this young woman was using it so she’d have “proof” she was old enough to drink alcohol. The police were called, and the customer was arrested for identity theft. Trying to gain what she wanted, she pretended to be someone she wasn’t.

Harvest Home

The hymn “Come, Ye Thankful People, Come” is often sung at Christian services of thanksgiving. Written in 1844 by Henry Alford, it begins with thanks to God for crops safely gathered in before winter. But it is more than gratefulness for the bounty of the land. The hymn ends by focusing on God’s “harvest” of His people when Christ returns: